A/N : I'd just to thank those nice people who reviewed chapter one, and to answer a couple of questions...To Jo - no Dawn in this fic, although I do agree S/D friendship is adorable, Dawnie just doesn't fit in this AU world. To Once More With Feeling - this chapter will answer your question ;-)

Hope you all enjoy chapter two, and please review!

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 2

"Spike, I really don't think that's going to help" his friend Willow told him as he poured himself another double vodka and downed it in one. She hated to see him like this, so out of control, so seemingly lost. Spike was always in control, always cool and calm about everything, but since Buffy had started dating Angel he'd changed. The further he drifted apart from his best friend, the less 'together' he seemed to be in himself.

"Nothing bloody helps" he told the red-head beside him, tipping yet more alcohol into his glass, "Nothing I can do for her..." he trailed off, downing his next drink just as fast as it's predecessor.

Xander then entered the living room again, from the bathroom, casting a questioning look at Willow, which received a sad shake of the head in response. Two hours ago, Spike's two friends had arrived at his apartment, a hundred and twenty minutes, a bottle of vodka (which they were pretty sure was not his first drink of the day) and a lot of worried glances later, Willow and Xander were no further forward in knowing what exactly had upset Spike this much and secondly what they could do to help.

"Bloody hell!" Spike cursed as he tilted the vodka bottle and realised there was no more brain-numbing juice inside. In annoyance and fury he got to his feet, threw the bottle which shattered against the opposite wall with an almighty crash.

Willow physically jumped and squealed, and Xander was getting beyond feeling sorry for his friend and way into annoyed real fast. He got to his feet beside Spike and grabbed the bleach blond's arm.

"That's enough" he said in an angry tone, not a tone of voice normally heard from the generally easy going, joke-making young man, "I don't know what the hell happened with you and Buffy but you have got to pull yourself together" he said sternly, "You're scaring Will and you're starting to worry me too..." he trailed off when his friend turned to look at him, a waterfall of tears cascading down his face, nothing but sheer pain in his eyes.

"I'm sorry" he choked out, blinking hard, stumbling to one side a little and glad to be caught by Xander's arm, "I just...oh God, I'm sorry" he repeated, falling back down onto the sofa next to the girl he affectionately called 'Red'. He leaned his head on her shoulder as he cried and a look of concern passed between Willow and Xander, the latter of whom went to the kitchen to make coffee, hoping that when he was sober, Spike might make a little more sense and they'd be able to help him out.

"Please Spike" Willow said softly, pushing his hair from his face as he continued to shake and sob like a child, "tell us what happened, we want to help"

With a loud sniff he pulled his head up to look at her and she half-smiled in encouragement for him to explain.

"I think I've lost her Red, lost her to him" he swallowed hard as he scrubbed at his face with the back of his hand, suddenly realising what a poof he must look, crying like a baby on his mates.

"You could never lose Buffy to anyone" Willow told him sincerely, "I've never known to people as close as you two"

Spike shook his head as he sat himself up straighter.

"It's different now" he said with regret and pain evident in his voice, "everything's different now he's got his claws into her..." he trailed off, squeezing his eyes tightly shut, trying to push the anger away, the awful feeling that he'd lost the most precious thing in his life to a scum-bag like Angel O'Connor.

"Come on Spike" Xander started as he re-entered the room from the kitchen, having just heard his friends last sentence, "nothing and no-one could come between you and the Buffster, you're solid"

Spike scoffed.

"Yeah, solid" he echoed, "Used to be but that stupid ponce got a hold of her and..." he changed thought halfway, "I had to tell her, had to tell her the truth" he rambled, "for her own good but now...now...she looked at me and there was so much hate"

"No" Willow protested immediately, "Not hate, Spike, Buffy could never hate you, she wouldn't know how"

"You didn't see her" Spike shook his head, "She was so angry, so hurt...and she blamed me" he laughed humourlessly at how ridiculous it all was. In an attempt to make her see what Angel really was, to save her from harm and protect her from more heart ache than was necessary, he'd actually caused her further pain, and he'd lost the things he held most dear in the bargain - her trust and her love.

"Spike, listen to me" Xander instructed, crouching on the floor in front of him, making him pay attention, "We all know what Angel is like and we all knew he was hiding something, honestly can't say we were all too surprised to find out it was a wife either. Point is, Buffy's not stupid, she'll realise you only told her to protect her and that this guy is scum and everything will get back to normal after she dumps the loser"

Spike laughed then, an almost frightening maniacal giggle. A combination of too much alcohol and heart ache, and the fact that his whole world seemed to be falling apart since his best friend, his missing piece, slammed her way out of his front door.

"You don't get it, do you?" he asked rhetorically of his friends, who looked blankly at him and then each other, "I told her about the poofter's other bint two days ago!"

"But I thought..." Willow started as Spike's laughter died down, "I thought she was here today"

"She was" he answered immediately.

Xander shook his head in defeat, pulling himself up to sit in the armchair opposite his two friends. Willow looked really worried and he understood why. Spike was never this broken about anything, only Buffy could have such a profound effect.

When the four had first met in high school, all were convinced that the other two were dating, but Willow and Xander, and Buffy and Spike, had completely platonic relationships, and so it had remained. They were the perfect little group of friends, fitted together like a jigsaw puzzle. Spike was the cool guy that all the girls wanted but couldn't have, while Xander was the funny guy, the comedian of the gang. Buffy was the pretty girl, loved by everyone she met, and Willow was the brains of the operation and also a born worrier, mothering everyone at one point or other.

Willow was halfway between wishing she'd never suggested to Xander that they might drop in at Spike's place on their way home from having lunch together, and wanting to help so badly it was painful.

"If you told Buffy two days ago" she began carefully, unsure of Spike's mood now, "and she was here again today getting you all upset about Angel...why hasn't she broken up with him?" she wondered aloud, a definite frown on her features.

"Still seeing the wanker" Spike answered bluntly, "Still thinks he's God's bloody gift" he snorted, feeling his pockets for a cigarette and then something to light it with. He soon remembered his lighter was across the room, probably amongst the broken glass of the vodka bottle since they'd both gone in the same direction in his fury. He half growled in annoyance at the white stick between his fingers, no use to him without a flame to ignite it, he tossed it onto the carpet in front of him and put his head back in his hands with a sigh.

"I'll go fetch that coffee" Xander said quietly as he left the room, knowing he was leaving Willow with the problem of 'what do we say and/or do next?'.

Neither the red-head or the brunette could believe Buffy was so stupid, so blind as to continue to see Angel when she knew he was married. It was too ridiculous for words, but was it? When you love someone, really loved them, you'd do anything, put up with anything just to be with them, both Xander and Willow knew that only too well, past experience playing through both their minds, people and circumstances best left unmentioned.

Five minutes passed in the silent living room until Xander returned with a tray, a pot of coffee and three cups. Spike wasn't a huge fan of coffee, really only kept it in the place for other people's sake, but he knew his friends were trying to help and like a good boy he finished two black coffees in record time.

Silence prevailed throughout this time, could have been ten minutes, half an hour, half a day, Spike wouldn't have noticed. He felt too numb, too sick inside to care whether it was night or day. He was devastated and for the life of him, as he began to go over it in his mind, he didn't know why.

Sure Buffy was his best friend and everything but to feel this bad, like a part of him was missing, like he'd been split in two and half of him was lost, should he feel this bad about it? It's not like...

"Oh God" a now sober but no happier Spike gasped and both Xander and Willow almost hit the ceiling, physically jumping at the first sound in the room for the past half hour, "Oh God, why didn't I see it" Spike moaned, closing his eyes.

"See what?" Xander frowned, "What didn't you see?"

"I love her" Spike answered, his head snapping up to look first at Xander then Willow, "I love Buffy"

The brunette shook his head and looked blank.

"We know that" he told him, "and we all love her, we're all best friends and..."

"No!" Spike interrupted, clearly frustrated at his friends lack of understanding what was now so clear in his own mind, "No, not like that!"

Willow's eyes went wide as dinner plates as a thought occurred to her. She knew now what had got Spike so worked up. It wasn't that he just loved her like a best friend, the way he always had...

"You're in love with her" she gasped, "Oh my God, you're in love with Buffy"

To Be Continued...